That's the way it was last year with our grapes. I yet watching them and tasting them, waiting for them to be perfectly ripe, then I went out to pick them and they were gone. Thank you sweet birds:) This weekend I was at Walmart and I bought one of those plastic owls with the rotating heads. I hope he helps keep the pests away, too :)

Hi Gill, look on Amazon, they have a huge variety :) The other day Butchy was out in the yard and he barked at a flock of birds sitting in our grape vines. They all flew into the apricot trees and it wasn't but a couple of seconds when I heard this loud streaking and all the birds flew out of the trees. They saw the snakes, LOL. Saturday I was at our local WalMart and I purchased a plastic owl with a head that rotates in the wind. We found a spot for him overlooking our grapevines. Last year the birds ate all of our grapes. We'll see how they react to our new plastic owl :)

Thank you, Cindy. We have a lot of birds and I even like to feed them, but I don't want to feed them my garden and fruit:) This is a great way to keep them away from the garden and the lawn furniture . . . and it doesn't hurt them, other than maybe raising their blood pressure for a moment :)

I like this idea but I'm afraid I would scare myself with them! We have so many snakes in Florida already...not sure I want to add the rubber variety too. My cats do a good job keeping birds, snakes, and squirrels away. They don't try to catch them but I guess their presence is enough to keep them at bay. Your table is set so pretty in the shade of the tree. Looks like a perfect place to sit and chat over a tasty meal...:) Have a happy week!

It is a great little trick, but if you are having guest and you have snakes hanging in your trees, be sure and warn them . . . you wouldn't want your sister-in-law having a heart-attack over a rubber snake:)

I had never heard of this! Very interesting. The only shaded place to sit in our yard is on the patio on the side of our house. Our neighbor's trees hang over the patio but for whatever reason, we never have bird droppings on our patio area! I guess the birds don't like that particular tree. Which can be a good thing!

I won't, Connie. I'm not looking to kill the bees, I just don't want them flying around by us. My dog was stung in the paw a few weeks ago. Oh, how he cried and licked his paw. He wouldn't even let us look at it.

Oh, that sounds terrible. Bee stings are so painful and the pain usually lasts for days. I've never heard of a way to keep them away. It is next to impossible to teach a dog to stay clear of bees or yellow jackets, because they are curious creatures and like to investigate there world. Usually that involves using their noise or paw, the two places that bees go for. That happened to Butchy a couple of years ago and I felt so helpless to comfort him:)

This is great info to have. However I do imagine the shrieks from friends and neighbors who wander over to your tree unsuspecting. Those rubber snakes are bound to give someone a real start. I bought a black crow as part of my Halloween decorations one year. I finally had to take it down because the neighborhood birds sat around and screeched at it all day trying to scare it out of their territory.

Who knew!!! You are a wealth of knowledge! Your back yard is so adorable it certainly does not deserve bird poop! thank you for your well wishes on the Flea, I so wish all of my blogging friends did not live miles away! Oh, and how can you be old enough to have a granddaughter old enough to be getting married? !!! You have fun and be sure to post wedding pictures...We love a wedding!

Hi Carol, I don't know what I said that would make you think I had a granddaughter getting married. Maybe you have me mixed up with someone else . . . not that I am not old enough, I certainly am, LOL. I am afraid that I was 60 when I became a grandma, that was nine years ago. So, if I wasn't such a late bloomers I could easily have a granddaughter getting married, but I'll have to wait a while for that :)

I'm having a terrible time with birds (and dogs) getting at my fruit trees this year so needless to say, I'm excited to give your snake idea a try! Also, I must tell you what a beautiful, inviting yard you have; looks like the perfect spot to sit and enjoy a glass of lemonade and the company of friends.

Hi Randi, thank you for your sweet words, we do enjoy our yard. Those trees are great for shade until the apricots start to ripen, then it's pretty messing and the bees swamp around, but that is only for 4/6 weeks a year:) I am sure that this will help with your bird problem, but dogs . . .if you mean peeing on your fruit trees . . . then I found this on the internet. it's worth a try: Dogs do not like the smell of citrus maybe if you cut oranges in half or grape fruit and hang them from the branches it may keep them away from the trees. Also if you put moth balls around the ground by your bushes it will keep them away. Don't do this it you have small children in the yard. Now, these are not my ideas, just something I read, but maybe worth a try. You could call your courthouse and ask to speak to your Master Garden and check these out with them before trying:) I would before trying the moth balls. They might effect your fruit, I don't know?

I have been out of blog land for a few weeks so have been having a good catch up today. I love your back garden it is so beautiful, a wonderful place to relax with friends and family. We do not have many snakes over here and certainly not ones that climb trees, so I wonder if our birds would be equally scared never having seen a snake before? It us lovely to be back and I look forward to keeping up to date. Lots of love xxxx

Dear Fran, an place with no snakes . . . that sound very appealing. I'm sure that your birds would still be born with an instinctive fear of any and all predators, but that's just my opinion. Hey, it's great to have you back in blog-land . . . welcome home:)

About Me

Hi, my name is Connie and I’m so pleased that you’ve found my blog. I'm a woman of simple pleasures. Like John Denver, "Sunshine makes me happy!" and other things that make me happy are my husband of 41 years, my lovely daughter and my two delightful granddaughters. I have a passion for life and all things creative. Three years ago we purchased a small country home on an acre of land, which for us is huge. Every day brings with it a new adventure. The fixing up, of our little fixer-upper and the mowing of that huge yard is going to give me the exercise and creative projects that I need to stay forever young. I am enjoying my journey, life is good!

Please do not copy or reproduce any photos, art work or written work on my blog. I love sharing, but like to be asked first.All photographs and art work are by me, unless otherwise noted.If you see a craft or greeting card that you want to copy, by that I mean take the idea and run with it, feel free. Crafts are for sharing,but photos and paintings are copyrighted. Thank you.

My welcome mat is always out and I want to thank you for stopping by . . . Please leave a comment so I know who came to visit and so I can reply. I have met so many lovely people through blogging and I am grateful for each and every new friend. Come again, real soon . . . Connie :)